Guardian Shadow
by Lost Shining Ghosts
Summary: Axel, Arch Angel of Fire, is assigned a human to defend named Roxas. As soon as he meets him, he feels something he knows he shouldn't for the boy. It's up to him, though, to find out why Roxas is being hunted by heartless.
1. Into The Night

**Guardian Shadow**

**Prologue – Into The Night**

Axel lounged against the wall of the clock tower, running a hand through his fiery hair. He closed his eyes with a contented sigh; it was these relaxing moments when he could truly appreciate the world.

Those moments when he didn't have the pressure of missions, when he wasn't being annoyed by the sub-ordinates, and when he could just forget about all of his duties to feel the cool breeze on his on his skin and the heat from the sunset on his face.

These brief moments when he released his duties as an arch angel, and pretend that everything was normal.

But, as the sound of beating wings reached his sensitive ears, he sighed irritably and pushed away from the wall; all good things come to an end. He glared at the blonde angel with vicious acid green eyes, met by amused blue eyes.

"What do you want, Larxene?" he growled, not in the mood to deal with the blonde's tricks. She just smirked venomously, stormy wings sparking; her wings were storm clouds, lightening zipping through the darkness unpredictably.

"Oh, nothing; just delivering you this notice. But, you probably won't be too happy about what's on it," she said in a teasing, honey coated voice while holding the notice out to him. With anouther glare at her, he snatched the note away, reading it.

_Axel, Arch Angel of Fire,_

_It's my duty to inform you that you have been assigned a human. Your business as an arch has been relieved so that you may watch over this human, defending him. His name is Roxas Ledger and he is located in Twilight Town._

Axel scoffed; what the hell! From the corner of his eye, Larxene smirked in amusement.

_Roxas has started being plagued by the heartless. It will be your duty as a Guardian to protect him and discover why the heartless are so interested in him specifically, then eliminate the issue. Only after you complete this mission, will you return as an arch._

_Objective is to look after the boy and discover why he is being plagued by the heartless._

_Xemnas_

Axel sighed angrily, the flimsy paper in his hands catching fire and crumbling into ashes. Larxene laughed menacingly at the reaction.

"I guess the hot-shot isn't happy with being assigned as a baby-sitter for some pathetic kid, huh?" she chuckled cruelly. Axel glared, his dark wings lighting like molten lava.

"Don't test me, Larxene," he warned with a low growl. Rolling her eyes she turned from the angel, crouching on the corner of the building, wings spread for lift-off.

"Oh, and before I forget, you'd better keep a close eye on this kid; I hear they're looking for any reason to get rid of you," she informed. Her tone held no concern, only amusement. But, before Axel could even attempt to retort or shoot her with a channel of flames, she dived off the edge and glided away into the flame of orange.

Great, Axel thought darkly. Now I'm playing baby sitter for some little kid. He huffed angrily. Well, now that his silence was interrupted, he might as well find out where this stupid kid was.

His wings spread out, the molten lava that swirled in the darkness of the ruffles glowing. For a while, he just stood there, letting the sun disappear beyond the horizon and watching the stars slowly reveal themselves.

Breathing in the fresh night air, his wings stretched further, the orange magma under the surface of the black ruffles lighting the area around him. He felt powerful, relaxed.

Slowly, he let himself fall forward, arms and wings spread. The exhilaration that always overtook him in this moment of falling, the wind rushing past his falling being as gravity attempted to bring him to the unforgiving ground; his heartbeat quickened at the feeling of danger, falling headfirst towards the ground.

Finally, just before impact, he barrel rolled and let his wings fold, then spread, his body lifting away from the ground and soaring over the building roofs. That rush of wind against his face now a gentle breeze, playing with his mane of red hair.

Roxas. He wondered what was so interesting about this kid that the heartless hunted him, what was so interesting that he had to look after this kid. Perhaps he'd find out once he found him, he thought as he dived into the forest.

High school was tomorrow, he remembered, ducking under some tree branches. I could find the kid then. For now, I'll enjoy whatever freedom I have left.

With that conviction, the angel of fire flew through the forest, soaring over the sandy beach and over the salty water. He flipped and twirled and soared with a certain level of elegance and control. Had anyone been watching, they would've been mesmerized by the movements.

So, this dark angel of fire enjoyed his flight, letting his worries go and letting his senses take over as he flew into the night.

~!~!~!~

Written by Lucian.

Sorry about us not being on for a while. We've been busy. Also, our computer is being stupid and not letting us on the internet. We're trying to update stuff but then all of our documents were fried with our laptop.

So, I decided to start this new story when I had a moment of free time at my buddy's house while watching a movie.


	2. Roxas, The Lonely Ocean

**Guardian Shadow**

**Ch. 1 – Roxas, The Lonely Ocean**

"Hey, Roxas! Wait up!" a voice called from behind the blonde, making him turn. Blue cerulean eyes met an identical pair, and he smiled at the brunette who ran up to him.

"What's up, Sora?" he asked his fraternal twin brother. Sora smiled, blue eyes sparkling with a glint of the sun.

"I took Namine's favourite sketching pencil and, well, now, I guess I'm running for my life," he explained. Roxas laughed; Namine was their artistic younger sister.

"She's making dinner tonight so I guess you're going without," the blonde chuckled.

"Hey! I was only trying to get even with her! She forced me to stay home and help her with her homework when I already had plans with Kairi and Riku!" he complained.

"You should know by now that Namine doesn't play to get even."

"Yeah, but what annoys me is that she couldn't just bother Demyx to help her instead! It isn't like he was doing anything important!" Roxas laughed at his brother.

"When would Demyx ever get off his lazy ass to help us with our homework?" Biting his bottom lip, Sora nodded in agreement; trying to separate their oldest brother from his sitar was an impossible task.

"Sora! Get back here, you brat!" drifted the voice of a very irritated younger sister. Sora looked at Roxas, fear etching into his gaze.

"Sorry bro! Gotta run!" he said, dashing off into the distance. The blonde girl ran up behind Roxas, anger burning flames in her blue eyes, lighter than both Sora and Roxas'.

"Did Sora run this way?" she asked, venom dripping into her question. Roxas resisted a smile; ah, sibling rivalries.

"I think he went that way," he instructed, misdirecting her. She dashed in the direction, yelling threats at Sora. Before Roxas could smile at the moment or shake his head at the little battle, anouther bunch of voices called out the blonde's name.

"Yo! Roxas, we need anouther player for a game of Grandstander! Wanna play?" Hayner invited, Pence and Olette behind him. Roxas sighed, smiling.

"Sure, why not?" he announced, walking toward the group. Olette laughed at the blonde's reaction, green eyes sparkling with amusement.

"Getting tired of hanging out with us, Roxas?" the brown haired girl asked with a soft, kind voice. Roxas smiled, stretching his arms over his head.

"No, just tired is all," he yawned. The three laughed and they walked through the town.

Truth was, Roxas was tired from lack of sleep. He hadn't slept for the past three days, ever since this creepy little creature tried to kill him and they'd been appearing more and more recently. He didn't know what the little monsters were but they made him fearful of closing his eyes and resting. After all, they appeared in his room once, leaking from the shadows, and attacked him when he was asleep.

It was hard to explain to his family the scream that had emitted from him when he saw the creature because, as soon as they came into his room, the black monsters disappeared, leaving him shaken and pale while his siblings looked at him questioningly. Whenever he was alone, they came out of nowhere and attempted to… well, it seemed like they were trying to kill him but, he was still alive, considering how pathetic he believes he is. Defenseless.

Sometimes they would play Grandstander in the main town square but everyone was preparing for a festival, making the square a crowded, busy place, so they played in the clearing outside the old mansion instead. Gates closed the mansion off but the gaps in the fence were large enough for most people to squeeze through. So, a few rounds after they started, when Olette accidentally kicked the ball too high, and it flew over the gate, they didn't worry.

"I'll get it!" Olette volunteered, skipping over to the gate. She attempted to squeeze through but couldn't. Hayner laughed maniacally.

"Your boobs are so big, you can't even get through the gate anymore!" he laughed, clutching his sides. Olette backed away from the gate, hands on her hips and face red.

"I'd like to see you get through to get the ball!" she challenged. Hayner snorted.

"Fine, I will," he accepted, approaching the gate. But he couldn't get through either.

"See, fatty! Even you can't get through," Olette stated smugly, arms crossed over her chest protectively. Hayner backed away from the fence, rolling his eyes.

"Yeah, I vote Roxas! He's the smallest of us, anyways," Pence spoke up, looking at the blue eyed blonde. Roxas nodded and went forward, squeezing through the bars with little effort. He was definitely as fit as Hayner but his body was leaner than the cameo clad blonde, allowing him an easier pass through the bars.

"Nice job, Roxas, I think I kicked it into the forest on the left," the brunette informed, tone apologetic. Roxas nodded, walking over to the left and disappearing into the greenery. Once in the underbrush, Roxas started to wonder if they would ditch him there but, with assurance, knew Olette was responsible enough to make them wait.

"There you are," Roxas muttered as he saw the ball sitting in a pile of foliage, slightly muddy. Picking up the purple ball, he brushed some of the mud off with his glove before suddenly becoming rigid, frozen, the hairs on the back of his neck standing on end.

Slowly, he turned, his eyes meeting the large yellow eyes of an almost large chameleon; it was scaly, with dark, almost bluish patterns, it's back arched like a cat, sharp scales running down and under the curled tail. A large horn protruded from the spot where its nose would normally be.

Roxas froze, his eyes locked with the yellow one. The shadow monster things were never this big before, he observed. The monster gave a low growl, snapping Roxas from his daze and he started running away from the creature. The creature revealed pointed teeth, and disappeared into invisibility.

Roxas looked over his shoulder, slowing down slightly when he saw nothing, but, jumping back when he saw the monster reappear in front of him. _Shit!_ He dodged a long, sticky tongue that darted from the creature's mouth, falling back by tripping over a root sticking up over the ground.

The creature disappeared again and Roxas let out an "Omff!" feeling a pressure on his chest knock the breath out of him. The creature reappeared, his clawed foot holding Roxas down, claws spread so that his face was revealed to the yellow eye. The blonde struggled under the chameleon, attempting to relieve the pressure but trapped under the claw. The large lizard hissed at him, his hot breath hitting the blonde's face.

Suddenly, the creature screeched in pain, flying backwards. Roxas tried to sit up but, the blood rushed from his face, making him dizzy. He saw the chameleon had flown backwards, scales ripped from the body and a black liquid seeping slowly from the wound. His eyes rolled back into his head and he saw the creature struggling to stand before the world around him faded to black.

* * *

Axel dove, spinning his flaming chakrams, and landed between the boy and the heartless known as a Sneak Army. The chameleon heartless hissed at the fire angel, the black blood flowing from the wound he had inflicted.

"Yeah, you're a prize," Axel murmured, chakrams spinning slightly faster. With anouther hiss, the creature disappeared, leaving Axel wary; Sneak Army's were a pain in the ass to defeat in his opinion. Spreading his wings and circling with the unconscious boy he defended, his acid green eyes flickered all around.

He shot a column of flames to his right at the movement of foliage scattering the dirt ground, the heartless howling in pain as the fire burned past the heavy defense of its scales, the flesh beneath sizzling with burns and bleeding shadows, black blood flowing from the wound. As it struggled to stand up once more and attack, Axel threw the chakram at the lizard, slicing into the revealed flesh and straight to its core.

The creature seemed to freeze before falling down dead, its head smacking down onto the ground with a sickening crack. A few seconds later, the heartless erupted in a puff of fire and smoke, a single heart rising from where its remains were. Axel's chakram also lay on the ground, no imprints of battle on the weapon. Folding his wings into his back, he marched over and picked up the chakram before turning towards the boy.

Spiky blonde hair framed a youthful, smooth face, matching the fit, lean body that it belonged to. The ocean blue eyes, now closed, were contrasted into shocking, almost electric, blue eyes from his sunny dirty blonde hair. Axel thought the boy, Roxas, was beautiful.

But he could tell something was wrong with just looking into those blue eyes for the briefest of moments; eyes like his could be excited, energetic, cheery. Instead, they expressed a calm sadness. Something no ordinary human would be able to figure out; but, Axel could figure these things out as an angel. And excelled observation skills.

Roxas… was lonely. Nobody would be able to guess that, not even the blonde himself, Axel figured. He was surrounded by friends and family, he was quite popular it seemed; it was like he had everything going for him. But, under that composure, the kid was alone. He'd never had a trustful friend, someone to confide in. He was alone yet surrounded by a crowd.

Axel noticed the eyes starting to flutter open and flew up into the canopy, out of site. He watched the blonde look around in a confused daze before shaking his head, fetching the purple ball, and running back towards the mansion. Axel followed like a silent assassin lying in wait, watching the boy return to his friends.

"Wow, Roxas, it took you like, ten minutes to get the ball! What took ya?" the annoying blonde one – Hayner, Axel reminded himself – asked rudely. Roxas passed through the bars of the fence, and scratched the back of his head as he passed Olette the ball.

"I guess it ricocheted off some trees cause… it was hard to find," he explained, though doubt and uncertainty washed through his tone like a wave. He shrugged then.

"Oh well! Come on! Let's play; I'm so going to kick Olette's butt!" Hayner said cockily, throwing a grin at the brunette. She shook her head.

"Well, Pence is beating you so far; he's got 38 and you've got 35," she stated. Axel grew bored of this mindless banter, instead observing Roxas, who looked at the ground, no doubt with those lonely oceanic eyes. The red manned angel actually felt a tug of pain at his heart, like this blonde being lonely was actually affecting him. He would take matters into his own hands.

Originally, he was going to keep a low profile, remain nothing but a shadow to Roxas, defending him from his fears and solving those problems from a distance. But, now, he felt inclined to reveal himself to the boy, drawn in by those sad eyes and wishing to vanquish the loneliness that dwelled within. If he was actually thinking about what he was doing, he'd think he was insane most likely; yet, his rational mind just seemed to drown in those eyes.

While he watched his lonely ocean play with the other children in this clearing surrounded by forest, he knew that his mind wouldn't rest until those eyes didn't cloak sad feelings.

Axel sighed, running a hand through his fiery red hair.

What the hell is wrong with me?

~!~!~!~

Written by Lucian ~

The beginning wasn't as strong as I thought it was, but I think that the structure found a more solid base once I continued.

Your opinion?

Also, to clarify, Roxas' family is comprised of his oldest brother, Demyx, his fraternal twin brother, Sora, and his younger sister, Namine. We'll say that Namine is about a year younger than the twins and that Demyx will be a few years older.


	3. The Family

**Guardian Shadow**

**Ch. 2 – The Family**

"Hey, what's for dinner?" Demyx asked, lazily gazing at Namine over the back of the couch as she walked into the living room, face flush with blood. Sora followed behind her, grinning guiltily as he looked at the floor, hands folded behind his back, both of them breathing like they had run a marathon.

"I was thinking about pasta," she huffed, breathless. Demyx raised an eyebrow, plucking a few strings on his sitar.

"Do I _want_ to know why you guys are out of breath?" the musician asked with amusement. Namine shot him a venom filled glare before marching into the kitchen, while Sora chuckled nervously.

"Uh, I kind of took a joke too far and her favourite sketching pencil broke," he explained, holding out the fragments of the utensil. Demyx winced dramatically with a smile.

"I would be careful of your dinner if I were you; who knows? She might even poison it if you really ticked her off," he laughed. The brunette gulped, looking at the ground; maybe he'd salvage a pop tart until breakfast. Both heads turned to the door as Roxas walked in, sighing as he closed the door. Suddenly, Demyx chuckled.

"Hey, Roxas, you wouldn't believe the trouble I got into at work for skipping my shift at the cash!" Roxas looked up from the ground and forced a smile.

"Why'd you skip?" he inquired. Pink dusted Demyx's cheeks and he laughed nervously.

"I'll tell ya later," he said, looking away and plucking more strings. Roxas nodded, understanding; Demyx always seemed to confide in Roxas, but only Roxas alone. The presence of Sora in the room was noted and, as the brunette glanced between the two blondes, it was realized that this was one of Demyx's problems which he could only tell to both his brother and best friend, Roxas.

"Anyways, I'm going to my room; studying," Roxas explained before retreating up the stairs and into his room. The blonde pulled out a textbook from a bookshelf full of, not only texts but, many other literary titles and genres. His room was arranged simply; a calming cream washed the walls, floor carpeted in a deep green carpet. A desk sat in front of a window, pencils and paper cluttering the mahogany furniture, on the opposite wall, beside the door, was the bookshelf, and in the corner, with the bookshelf in arms reach, was the bed.

The bedding had a simple blue quilt, and a matching pillow set. The room was neat, unlike most teenage guy rooms; heck, if he compared his room to Demyx's, most wouldn't think the two were related. The walls were bare and his clothes neatly in his closet; Axel analyzed all of this carefully.

The angel stood in the middle of the room, concealed by a kind of power known as 'glamour'; glamour is almost like an aura that can be conjured by immortals, such as angels, to give them a cloak of invisibility against mortal eyes. Without glamour, their world would've been discovered a long time ago by humans.

The invisible angel watched Roxas, propping himself up on an elbow, as he flipped the pages in his text, processing every motion the blonde went through. He left his door open, indicating he had nothing to hide or that he feared the appearance of heartless behind a closed door, leaning toward the idea that he's already had them show up in his room. Noticing the room across from Roxas', which, from the band poster on the outside, Axel could theorize was Demyx's, the red head confirmed a strong relationship between the two.

Axel figured that Roxas was the connection of the family, because of his neutral attitude and friendly demeanor; even if the siblings would quarrel among themselves, Roxas was probably going to be the unbiased judge of the feud. Though, Axel couldn't be sure of this because he hasn't seen Roxas interact with his sister very much at all.

Also, just the fact that Roxas had retreated to his room rather than stay down stairs and accompany his siblings proved that Roxas had drawn himself away; that he was more comfortable with indifference to being socially active. And the fact that his brothers didn't say anything about him locking himself away in his room meant that this behaviour was normal for him, not brought on by the appearance of the heartless.

It also became apparent to the angel that Roxas wasn't going to leave his room until dinner so Axel walked out of the room, exploring the house he knew he'd have to become used to. The upstairs hallway consisted of a bathroom and three rooms; one Roxas', one was Demyx's, and, Axel could guess because of the photos, one belonging to Sora. It would also make sense for the three boys to share the floor, giving their sister privacy, he concluded.

He wandered down the stairs, greeted first by the living room, where Demyx strummed his sitar, making random melodies. That room led into the kitchen and down anouther hallway, where a second bathroom had been placed as well as, what Axel could say with certainty, Namine's room. If the drawings strewn about the room weren't direction enough, dresses hung over the back of her chairs and make up cluttered her vanity mirror.

"Hey! Roxas! Dinner's ready!" Namine called up the stairs. Axel sighed; he'd show himself to the blonde after he had a chance to observe him with his family some more, draw more conclusions. After he got a better understanding, he'd tell the kid about the heartless.

He walked out of the room just as Roxas stepped down the last step, holding his breath as their shoulders made contact. Have you ever had that feeling of falling, that weakness, and then the landing that had the breath knocked out of you? That was how Axel felt in the brief seconds they connected.

Axel felt like his entire mind concentrated on that contact, drawing out time as it is known as the rest of the world dispersed. The amount of heat, no matter how small, that emanated from Roxas, was cherished by him. He had the urge to wrap his arms around the boy, smother himself in that warmth.

He didn't know that he could _want_ something so small so much.

But, the coldness of reality crashed on his mind as he noticed the confused expression on the boy's face; I'm still invisible, Axel reminded, backing up from the spiky haired blonde. Roxas looked conflicted for a moment before shaking his head and walking into the kitchen.

Axel mentally cursed himself. He couldn't let that happen again while he tried to remain hidden; he didn't know what would happen. He was actually confused but, imitating Roxas, shook it off and walked into the kitchen area, where the four siblings had seated themselves around a table.

Where are their parents? Axel wondered for the first time as the four ate in a comfortable silence. Curiosity getting the better of him, he started wandering the house once more, searching for a picture with any adults in it. Any. Axel almost missed the photo too, passing down the upstairs hallway, before he froze.

In a small black frame, it couldn't be older than a few years, stood a complete family; Roxas and Sora, about twelve or thirteen, smiled at the camera, leaning against each other. Demyx stood with crossed arms and a grin behind the two twins, a teenage youth evident in his face. Namine stood beside the twins, smiling innocently, the hand of a woman on her shoulder.

The woman had light green eyes, her heart shaped face framed by wavy maroon hair. She smiled softly at the camera, standing beside a tall man, with short dirty blonde hair; his face was very angular, like Demyx's face was now. Then, something surprising; a little head peeking around the man's pant leg.

A hand clutched the pant leg, the rest of the body hidden behind the leg, as a head peeked around; the hair was darker, like Sora's and the mother, but large clear green eyes looked up at the camera, the only other green eyes in the group other than their mother.

Wait, so, where are these three? Axel wondered once more. This picture, like he could figure before, couldn't be older than three years, maybe even four. The red head drove the thoughts away; I'm only supposed to get rid of the heartless. Keeping this up, I think I'm becoming obsessed with this kid.

Axel snorted. No, I'm just being thorough with my research. It's not like I actually care. He denied but, deep down in his heart, he knew that he did care but, he had a mission to complete; after this mission, he'd just return to his position as an arch. Nothing good would happen by becoming too attached.

Leaning against the wall the photo was on, Axel waited for the blonde to walk up the steps. They should be finished soon, he thought. He could hear some idle conversation drift up the stairs, catching bits and pieces of it.

"You're going to have to buy me a new sketching pencil; that thing costs more than you're worth."

"That's a bit harsh…"

"Yeah, the truth can be harsh!"

"Calm down, Namine. I'll buy you anouther pencil."

"Sora, you should've learnt your lesson! I was actually considering putting something in your spaghetti like hot sauce to get you to learn your lesson!"

"Seriously guys, are you going to argue about that pencil all night?"

"What do you think, Roxas?"

"Er, why are you getting me into this?"

"Because, now answer!"

"Okay! Okay, geez; well, I don't really think this should be such a big deal but Sora should get you a new pencil. Simple as that! Hey, could you pass down the lemonade?" Axel smiled. Such a normal conversation, considering that one of the members is being hunted by Heartless.

"Hey, why'd you just kick me!"

"I didn't! I swear!" Axel felt concentration sweep through his features; she actually sounded sincere.

"There! You just did it again!" Sora's voice accused.

"Sora, it wasn't her!" Roxas defended. "I can see her legs, they couldn't reach that far."

"Was that you, Demyx?"

"No, bro! Swear it wasn't – hey! Did you just kick me?"

"AHHH!" Namine's terrified scream alerted Axel, and he started down the stairs.

"What is it!"

"Something green! It's like a tentacle! Ew, it's so gross!" The girl hopped off a chair, barely brushing by Axel, running to her room, as he walked into the kitchen. Suddenly, as he walked in, the table shattered into tiny wood fragments, forcing the three boys away from the table.

"What the hell is that?" Demyx exclaimed. The creature was taller than any of the occupants in the kitchen, a large red bulb in the centre of four thorny, leg-like vines, a coffin raised underneath the bulb. One black vine stood alone, snapping what seemed like jaws at the three, in the centre of the jaws was an unblinking red eye. Roxas, Sora, and Demyx backed away from the monster and Axel, still invisible, summoned his chakrams.

Man, I hate Leechgraves, he sighed inwardly. At least this is a small one. Suddenly, the leechgrave moved, two seeds shooting from the top of the red bulb, landing on Sora and Demyx. A green pollen emitted from the seeds, knocking out the two surprised brothers, Roxas left awake.

Axel lunged at the black tentaclaw as soon as it turned towards Roxas, flames shooting from his chakrams. The growth shriveled up under the exposure to the flames, Roxas backing up frantically from a now weakened leachgrave.

"What's going on?" he asked himself, loud enough for Axel to hear though. With a sigh, the angel released his glamour, his black cloak flowing and his dark flaming wings spread in a manner of defense in front of the boy. He grinned over his shoulder while throwing a chakram at the creature.

"The name's Axel; got it memorized?" he asked, tapping his temple. Then, he threw his other chakram, just to make sure the thing wouldn't regenerate. The creature let out a pained screech before bursting into black smoke, heart rising from the centre.

With a sigh, he picked up his chakram and turned to Roxas, who seemed slightly paled.

"Hey, if you thought that thing was terrifying, that was a baby leechgrave; the older ones are so frustrating to kill cause they just keep regenerating. One of the worst heartless to come across," Axel rambled, scratching the back of his neck as he let the chakrams disappear. Roxas shook his head.

"What's happening!" he demanded, almost hyperventalating. "I was being stalked by these things and then this thing came out of nowhere and now I'm talking to some angel guy – wait, what happened to my brothers?" He turned to look down at the sleeping pair.

"Don't worry; they were just knocked out. Leechgraves are nasty little problems that can shoot out poisonous seeds and sleeping seeds. Thankfully, your siblings got the second," Axel informed, following Roxas' gaze. Roxas looked up at the angel, blue eyes crashing in waves of conflicting emotions.

"You… saved us, didn't you?" he asked with a sort of realization. Axel grinned.

"Don't mention it."

~!~!~!~

Written by Lucian ~

Kind of ended it suddenly, didn't I? Well, I promise to have better closure for the next chapter. Also, because there will be gore in the chapters to come, I'm debating changing Drama to Horror instead.

Just a warning.


	4. Monopoly

**Guardian Shadow**

**Ch. 3 – Monopoly**

Roxas looked at Axel with wide, almost stunned eyes.

"Roxas! What was that noise?" Namine's voice drifted. With a sigh, Axel glanced from the door to the boy, whose large ocean blue eyes watched the red head carefully.

"Look, you never saw me, alright?" he said as his body slowly dispersed, becoming translucent. Roxas was now the most confused being on the planet as his sister walked back into the room.

"Is… Oh my, what happened? The table's broken, Sora and Demyx…" she trailed questioningly, looking at Roxas with sky blue orbs. Roxas shook his head, trying to clear it.

"Uh, well, there was this thing that came out of the floor, it knocked them out, but… now, it's gone," he ended, carefully choosing his words. This was the first time these things had ever tried to attack him with his family around, he realized with a frightened certainty. And what was that angel person with the weapons? He… seemed nice. Well, he didn't try to attack Roxas, which made him believe that he wasn't with those monsters.

What did he say his name was? Alex? Wait, no, it was Axel. Yeah, definitely Axel.

_Got it memorized?_

"Could you help me Roxas?" Namine asked, snapping Roxas out of his daze. She was attempting to lift Sora. "What happened to these two?"

"They were knocked out. They might just think it was a bad dream," Roxas stated, holding Sora's legs while Namine held the arms. She shook her head and sighed.

"I don't know what happened but, well, maybe I don't want to know; we could just tell them I put something in their dinner. We can just leave this memory from their minds, whatever it was," she suggested, smiling angelically. Roxas smiled back; he liked how Namine would leave things be. The two hoisted Sora onto the armchair in the living room and went back, struggling as they carried Demyx to the couch.

"Yeah, I'm going to get Kairi and Riku; tell them that I pranked Sora and Demyx and that it didn't go too well," Namine giggled, any previous fears evaporated. Roxas nodded, watching her skip out the door.

"You're sister isn't one to prod, is she?" a foreign voice asked, making Roxas' heart beat ten times faster and making him jump in fright as he turned toward the owner. The red manned angel looked down at him, raising an eyebrow. "Easily frightened?"

"No, you just surprised me," Roxas said, taking in deep breaths. After a moment, he calmed down and faced Axel, looking him straight into his acid green eyes. "Who are you?" The angel tapped his chin in thought, like he was trying to make a good answer.

"I'm… what you would call a Guardian," he started. "A defender, if you will, of one certain human that I am assigned to. And, well, you're that unfortunate soul." Roxas looked at his feet in confusion.

"But, if you're an angel, isn't that a good thing?" he asked, sitting on the arm of the couch as Axel leaned against the wall.

"It is… and it isn't. You see, I only got this assignment yesterday; you know those monsters that have been attacking you? Those are the main reason that I'm here."

"What are they? What do they want with me?"

"They're called Heartless; creatures who collect heart from mortals for their own purposes. They come in different forms, like that Leechgrave you saw back in there, but they all want the same thing; hearts. It's my job to make sure that they die, therefore the hearts they've stolen are released."

"So, they want my heart?" Roxas subconsciously gripped the left side of his chest, feeling the rhythmic beats beneath the fabric.

"That's where everything gets a bit fuzzy; normally, heartless don't really bother to get specific hearts. When they fail, they just move on but something has them coming after you. That's why I was assigned as your Guardian; it'll be my duty to protect you from the heartless until we figure out why they like you so much." Axel's wings ruffled a bit, the fire in them gone, leaving just coal black feathers and the smell of ash in the room; Roxas eyed those wings suspiciously.

"The thing is, you don't really look like an angel; aren't angels supposed to have white wings and golden halos and stuff? I mean, I've never heard of a good angel with black wings," he stated, though his tone was apologetic.

"You honestly believe in that kind of stuff? That's human folklore; trust me, you would've gone extinct if angels were like that because we've been keeping heartless populations down for centuries. Seriously, a _halo_?" Roxas felt his face flush and he looked at his feet.

"So, uh, you're here to protect from those mon- er, heartless, right?" Axel nodded. "And figure out why they like me so much?" Axel nodded once more. "And then, after that, everything will go back to normal?" Axel grinned.

"So, you've got it memorized?" he asked tauntingly. Roxas bit his lip, visible sadness sweeping his eyes; Axel became intrigued.

"Can you please stop saying that?" he asked, his tone faintly begging. Axel was about to ask why but, noticed Sora started to stir from his sleep. The fiery angel started to disperse from reality, leaving Roxas confused until he heard the faint yawn from his twin.

"Man, what happened?" the brunette asked, rubbing a hand through his messy brown hair. Roxas walked over, looking down at his brother.

"Namine. She put something in our food," he laughed. "I don't even know why we doubted she'd do it." Sora rubbed his eyes and yawned as the front door swung open. Kairi and Riku followed Namine, and Roxas stepped to the side as they crowded Sora; he knew Riku and Kairi but wasn't as good friends with them as he was with Hayner, Pence, and Olette.

"Sora! Why were you being so mean to Namine anyways?" Kairi asked with a giggle. Roxas retreated up the stairs and into his room, closing the door behind him for the first time in four days. With a sigh, he turned and sat on his bed, leaning his head against the wall. Axel started to fade back into existence, vibrant green eyes being the first thing the blonde could see as he faded in.

It reminded him of the Cheshire Cat, in a way.

"How do you do that?" Roxas asked curiously. He'd seen the angel do it before and wondered about it.

"It's called 'glamour'; it's a power we've had for centuries to keep our kind hidden from your people," he explained with a shrug. Roxas nodded, a silence dragging on between the two. The blonde started to feel uncomfortable with the surreal being just standing in the middle of his room.

"So, do you want to play a game?" he offered. Axel couldn't hide the surprise from his face; as soon as he said, 'so' the red head was guessing that he'd ask anouther question about being an angel, or immortal, but, a game?

"Uh, what game?" he asked hesitantly. Roxas shrugged and stood up, heading over to a closet tucked away in the corner.

"I have Monopoly; even if only two people are playing, it's still fun," Roxas stated, kneeling on the floor and setting up the game board. Axel glanced around for a moment before kneeling down with him, wings folded tight against his back. Roxas occupied himself with setting everything up, straightening out the money also; Axel watched the boy carefully.

Was he wrong? He wondered. This kid wasn't anything like he thought he would be; he figured Roxas would be indifferent, sad, although he did try to put on a fake smile for an act. But, now, those lonely ocean blue eyes were overcome with curiosity. Even though he'd seen it before, he didn't think Roxas would ask him to play a game with him; no, that was definitely the _last_ thing he'd expect.

"Which piece do you want to be?" he asked, holding out a hand of small metal characters. Axel looked away from those blue orbs to the hand, picking up a random piece with the carefulness of not touching the blonde's hand.

Roxas grinned at him before choosing an iron and putting the other pieces in the box. Axel examined the little metal trinket; a car, one of the old kinds too. He put it down onto start and they took a few turns, Roxas explaining some of the game to him. It was quiet for a majority of the game. Axel's mind started to wander back to the three absent family members.

"I saw that picture just outside of your room," he started as he rolled the dice. Roxas nodded, though unaware of which picture he referred to.

"So, where are your parents?" Roxas bit the inside of his cheek; oh, _that_ picture.

"Uh, my mom was in a drunk driving accident with my little sister; dad committed suicide a few months later," Roxas hesitated, swallowing. Axel noticed the sudden loss of eye contact at the mention of this subject.

"I'm… sorry; when did it happen?"

"About a year ago," he answered solemnly. Axel nodded, handing Roxas the dice. That explained Roxas' slight indifference to others; he was still grieving over the loss of his parents and sister. And, while the rest of his family seems not to think much of it, Roxas was slightly more affected than them.

Axel wondered if it was because Roxas had a stronger connection to one of his parents.

"You remind me of him, you know?" Roxas said quietly, causing Axel's head to jerk up. Roxas didn't look away from the game board. "My dad, I mean. You have that same kind of mood around you, like I can actually trust you. Kind of stupid, right? How little things can really hurt someone?" A single tear fell onto the board. Axel felt that fist around his heart again.

"After my mom died, it just seemed like I lost my dad then; he just wasn't there anymore. He was dead already, even before he hung that noose around his neck." More tears fell onto the game board and Roxas' hands trembled.

"I… I found him, you know. He was in the basement; h-he didn't leave a note. I… he – he was just g-gone," Roxas struggled to speak, his voice breaking with short sobs. Axel reached a hand out toward him before pulling back; despite the lump that had risen in his throat, despite the sadness that he felt grip his heart at seeing this boy in pain, he was here for a mission; nothing more, right?

Roxas took a couple of calming breaths before moving his piece.

"He also said that phrase a lot," he added, wiping his eyes with his sleeve. Axel watched him for a moment, questioningly. When the sleeve left his face, he was smiling with tear streaked cheeks. "One time, we were at the beach and I had found a fossil of a fish. He told me that the fish was millions of years old could even tell me what kind of fish it was; after that, he ruffled my hair and asked, 'Got it memorized?'"

Roxas paused for a moment, before picking up the dice and dropping them into Axel's hand. "Like I said, it's kind of stupid how the little things hurt the most."

Axel nodded silently, rolling the dice. Poor kid, he thought, to find his dad, one he obviously looked up to, dead in the basement. Axel continued to play with him until it was late.

"Uh, Axel? I need to sleep now so, could you just give me some privacy to change?" he asked self consciously. Axel nodded fading out of site and turning toward the wall as Roxas changed.

"Good night, Axel," the blonde said as he crawled into the bed sheets. Axel sat in the stool at his desk, watching his form twist in the sheets to get comfortable.

Why would heartless go after Roxas, of all people? His heart was so damaged, with so many pieces taken away by chance, that he wasn't the ideal victim for heartless. Roxas was broken, heartless need full hearts, ones untainted with pain or negative emotions. Pure hearts.

Axel swallowed, green eyes thoughtful and sad; Roxas… He wondered how much trust the boy put into him, how willing Roxas was to Axel already, just based on a few assumptions. He wouldn't have any trouble protecting this kid, he could already figure that, but what he was worried about was finding out why the heartless were after him; why they were so interested in a damaged soul.

Axel knew that tomorrow Roxas didn't have to go to school, seeing as it was Saturday; that meant he could start trying to find out where the heartless were coming from. He figured they could travel to Halloween Town, see what happens, and then go home afterward.

Roxas sighed in his sleep, making Axel smile, the small amount of light in the room making his green eyes shine.

"Goodnight, Roxas."

~!~!~!~

Written by Lucian ~

I swear something interesting will happen in the next couple chapters! But, I kind of just wanted to get the family issue out of the way.

Actually, this chapter was difficult for my sister to read and for me to write because it's kind of how we feel about our dad.

***Warning: Personal Problems Ahead***

Ever since our parents split, it's like the dad we knew for fifteen years just vanished, instead leaving us this stranger we don't know. They've been split for about a year and he's already had around seven girlfriends; sometimes, I just get really angry at him for doing this to us.

For behaving like we don't matter since our mom isn't there anymore. For treating us like objects rather than children; and, most of all, treating our custody like a sick game instead of matter to be taken seriously.

***Personal Problem Outlet Now Over***

Anyways, yeah, within the next few chapters, there will be something interesting.


	5. Zig

**Guardian Shadow**

**Ch. 4 - Zig**

Roxas eyed the portal of swirling storm clouds uncertainly.

"Are you sure this is the only way we can get to where ever we're going?" the blonde asked cautiously. Axel rolled his eyes, stretching out his flaming wings though careful not to let the flames touch the surrounding forest trees.

"Yeah, we're traveling to anouther dimension; it's not like we can take the bus," Axel said sarcastically, an impatience hiding under the statement. Roxas sighed, biting his lip.

"Okay," he breathed out, stepping through the swirling storm door; he didn't feel anything as he passed through, only noting the temperature drop as he passed from a dense forest and into an unknown area. He looked around the desolate space, feeling the dark atmosphere really affect him; the sky was a stormy grey, making the area dark, save for a few street lamps. Beneath his feet was an old stone path, something you'd expect in old street but the stones, along with the barbed fence perched a top the tall stone wall, making a caged in feeling.

"Ah! You smell that?" Axel asked with outstretched arms. Roxas sniffed the air, crinkling his nose in distaste; it smelt like dead leaves and rotten fruit. "That's the smell of fresh heartless! This place is usually crawling with them."

"Really? I don't see any," the blonde stated, feeling shivers crawl down his spine the longer he stayed in this place. Roxas jumped back, startled, as something appeared from dust and skitter toward him on six, insect like legs. Its body was pink and pudgy, a black face with protruding lower jaws. Yellow eyes looked at the startled Roxas from under a pair of black antennae, emotionless.

"See? This is a Creepworm; these things are harmless though. One of the better Emblem heartless," Axel stated, watching the pink thing scamper in a playful circle. Roxas stopped cowering, watching the thing run aimlessly around in a circle.

"It's actually kind of… cute," he said, almost like he couldn't believe what he had said. The two antennae wiggled at the ground as it circled some more.

"Yeah, don't get too attached; these things get eaten by the bigger Heartless, seeing how pathetic it is," Axel stated, picking the squirming creature up. "Which is probably why we should keep it for the time being; see if any larger heartless are hungry." The Creepworm whimpered, curling away from Axel in his grip.

"I thought that we were trying to figure out why they come after me; not offer them a meal," Roxas inquired as the pink creature hopped from Axel's grip, rubbing its face against the blonde's shoes. Axel sighed.

"Look, kid, I know what I'm doing; this is the world farthest from Twilight Town and I wanted to see how many stronger Heartless are here; that way, we'll find out if they're being drawn to you or if they're being created by someone." Roxas nodded with understanding. Axel pondered for a moment, gazing at a jack-o-lantern lamp nearby. "Also, that Leechgrave in your house; those things only appear here."

Axel started to walk down the closed in stone path, Roxas quickly following, the Creepworm nipping at his heels playfully. With the way this thing was behaving, the cerulean eyed blonde wondered why no one kept these things as pets; looking around the odd exterior, the heartless was quite cute and playful.

They walked into what seemed like a town square, a fountain spewing sewage green water and a few house lined the perimetre of the area. A tall figured paced back and forth, tapping his chin; he's taller than Axel, Roxas thought, seeing as he was already a head shorter than the angel. Though, the tall figure passed, moving to anouther part of town.

"Was that a heartless?" Roxas asked, noticing the oddness; skeletal head, skeleton thin, a splayed neck –

"No, that was one of the inhabitants of this world; trust me, you'll see some stranger characters in other places," the angel promised. The entire place seemed deserted of heartless.

"Wow, I don't think I've ever come to this place without seeing at least one heartless! I can't believe it!" Axel exclaimed, crossing his arms. Roxas smiled at this slightly childish act.

"Alright, let's get to the grave yard," the angel huffed, stalking off. Roxas' eyes widened, looking down at the Creepworm incredulously.

"Grave yard?" he asked it disbelievingly before catching up to the fiery angel. Subconsciously, Roxas reached out for Axel's hand for some kind of sanctuary; Axel knew that he was surprised by the sudden contact, trying desperately not to touch him for the time they had become acquainted but, just the small touch, Axel felt little chemicals setting off reactions in his head, euphoria sweeping over him.

He squeezed Roxas' hand, in somewhat of a reassurance for them both. Roxas that Axel was there to protect him and Axel to make sure that they were, for true, holding hands.

With the little heartless trailing behind, they walked into a foggy part of the town; the grave yard. Smoke misted the ground, head stones labeling areas where the dead were buried and even one large unopened coffin. The Creepworm crawled near the coffin, sniffing it, before cowering and crawling to hide behind the pair. Axel smirked, letting go of Roxas' hand.

"Who thinks that a heartless is in the coffin?" he sing-songed, summoning chakrams in his hand, approaching the coffin; suddenly, he paused three steps away.

"Roxas, why don't you stand near it?" he suggested. Roxas looked at him, horror stricken.

"Why me?" he asked, ocean orbs wide with fear.

"If you're a heartless magnet, if there's one in there, it should be awakened by your presence. This is all apart of figuring out why the heartless are hunting you," Axel dismissed. Roxas drew in a shuddering breath; both from fear and the fact that the temperature had dropped a few more degrees, making his breath a fog.

"Why's it so cold?" he muttered as he approached the coffin, away from the heat emitted from the angel's fiery wings. Roxas neared it, nothing happening.

"Guess it can't sense you; go ahead and open it," Axel encouraged, a grin on his face. Roxas shot a glare over his shoulder but touching the coffin with his hand, applying pressure; now or never, he thought.

The lid moved less than an inch before a ghoulish sound raised from the coffin. Roxas paused, before yelping out at his view suddenly being filled by a pointed smiling toothed face, one yellow eye hanging out of it's socket but a chain. Axel laughed as he fell backwards at the site of the heartless.

"Ha ha, ah, Hover Ghosts," he sighed, spinning the chakrams. Axel made quick work of the heartless, while the Creepworm nudged Roxas, encouraging him to stand. The blonde couldn't help but chuckle.

"Zig," he suddenly stated as the red head finished up.

"Eh?" he questioned. Roxas shrugged and looked down at the heartless once more, which snuggled against his side.

"I was thinking about calling it Zig; it seems to like us." Axel sighed, letting his weapons disappear before he rubbed his temples in slow circles.

"Okay, Roxas, let me try to explain this; despite that thing seeming tame and friendly, it's still a heartless. That thing has stolen someone's heart to stay alive and probably won't hesitate to do it again; trust me, it's not a pet," Axel explained. Roxas bit his lip, conflicted. The Creepworm – Zig – scurried around the kid in happy patterns.

"Well, it doesn't have to be a pet; we could just let it follow us around. Plus, you said something about other heartless wanting to eat him? He could be bait if heartless aren't attracted to me," the blonde debated. Axel sighed once more; no good would come with having that pathetic heartless with them. Where would Roxas put it when it was in Twilight Town anyways?

"Ugh, fine, I'll humor you," he gave in, drowning in those large cerulean eyes. Roxas smiled beautifully; this kid'll be the death of me, Axel sighed.

"Cool! So, where are we going now?" he asked, picking himself up. The angel looked around thoughtfully.

"There aren't very many heartless around here so I don't think it would be worthwhile to continue walking around aimlessly. We've already got all the information we need," Axel answered, heading back towards the town centre. Roxas followed hurriedly, Zig at his heels.

"Really? What information?" he inquired, confused.

"We learned that the heartless aren't coming after you on their own; someone's sending them after you," Axel stated. Roxas looked even more confused now. Axel sighed, "There aren't very many heartless here, which means that they aren't being created, they're being sent to Twilight Town. And, since that Hover Ghost didn't come after you by some kind of sixth sense attraction, it means they're being controlled and made to go after you." Roxas nodded slowly.

"You're very insightful," he murmured. Axel shrugged, as they passed through the town's centre, before stopping abruptly and waving his hand, a stormy portal appearing once more.

"Well, let's go," he instructed. Roxas gulped, passing through the dark portal. He emerged and noticed the dim light of the sunset.

"Hey, how is it this late already?" he wondered aloud as Axel passed through the portal. The angel shook out his flaming wings.

"Time passes differently in places; you'll learn this the more we travel around," he answered, stretching out his arms. With a curt nod, the blonde looked up to the sky, wondering. Axel observed the boy, waiting. Suddenly, he turned to him with a smile.

"Have you ever tried sea salt ice cream?"

* * *

The sunset's twilight showered them in a warming orange glow. Roxas smiled, letting his feet swing back and forth on the clock tower roof; he liked the way the light reflected off the water of the sea, making the water almost look aflame. It was peaceful, calming.

"Here," he said as he handed the fiery angel behind him a Popsicle, the harmless heartless asleep at his side. The angel looked at him, into his blue eyes, then at the ice cream curiously, before taking a bite.

"It's salty… yet sweet," he figured. Roxas smiled widely.

"That's almost exactly what I said when I first tried it," he chuckled before turning back to the view. The two sighed, contented. A comfortable silence fell between them, lasting for a while as they ate, until Roxas spoke once more.

"I haven't been here in a while," he stated, looking down at the last bit of ice cream clinging to the stick. "I used to hang out here with my dad a lot. We even brought my little sis once. Yeah, those were the days," he sighed, sadly yet also happily at the memories.

"You still haven't said your little sister's name; you keep on referring to her as little sister or you don't talk about her at all. Was something wrong with her?" Axel observed. Roxas laughed dryly.

"Nah, I just wasn't as attached to her. Although, if you're curious, her name was Light," he answered. Axel nodded, though slightly taken aback by Roxas' indifference to his dead sister.

He seemed to have a strong connection to his father but, as soon as it came to his sister, he became uncaring, neutral. Axel wondered but realized it with a sort of epiphany, watching the side of Roxas' face as he looked down at the town below; he was _jealous_ of his sister. That may be why he didn't care. His father could've spent more and more time with Light than with Roxas, making feelings of envy rise from him. It probably made it worse when his father became practically catatonic after his wife and daughter's death. Axel once more couldn't help feeling sorry for the blonde.

"Come on, let's go," Roxas said after the sun had hidden itself below the horizon, standing up. Axel pushed himself away from the wall with a grunt, stretching his wings and rubbing the back of his head. The settling darkness made the air fresh, the night cool; Axel grinned, feeling the air brush against his face.

Where would they go tomorrow?

~!~!~!~!~

Written by Lucian ~

Hello! Lexi here! Got an email telling me to post this. The bro is out at the moment but I'm posting the chapter! Yay!

Mah kitteh is asleep at da moment! And glaring at me! Can cat's glare while they sleep? My cat defies gravity so yes she can! BWAHAHAHA!

Something just crashed upstairs! Oh well, I think Roxas is cute and sad and maybe a little emo at the moment. Why is his family so dysfunctional? Lucian has major problems. I WANT A ZIG! Ah, Creepworms, so cute and pathetic. They really are.

Alright bye!


End file.
